Boutique owner sells vintage items

OREGON – Girls who just want to have fun will find a kindred spirit in the owner of Where the Dragonfly in Conover Square.

The boutique, which opened in June, is intended to offer a lighthearted shopping experience, owner Michele Konieczko said.

“I give them a basket, I don’t care if they buy anything,” she said. “I want them to have fun. That’s the point.”

Some customers so enjoy trying on her masks that they say they want to host a masquerade, she said. Masks range in price from $4.99 to $40.

She offers a lot of jewelry, because all women have the same earring size they did in high school, so they can walk out feeling good about themselves, Konieczko said.

Many of the accessories are less than $10 because, she said, it’s more fun when customers can afford to buy multiple items.

“Everybody can afford something here,” she said.

Konieczko, 52, of Byron, rented space for 5 years in Houston’s Hen House, also in Conover Square, for her vintage clothes. She has moved her apparel to one of the two spaces, next to each other, under the Where the Dragonfly name. She is considering opening the wall to make one large store.

Most of her clothes and accessories are vintage or vintage-inspired. Charles Trenet and other singers from the 1920s to 1940s can be heard on the sound system while you try on a knitted head wrap or a shoulder wrap with faux fur.

“It all has a vintage feel,” she said. “There’s a nostalgic feel to it.”

The store’s name is meant to evoke images of a fun, fantastic place, Konieczko said.

“The place between being grounded and fantasy, that’s what this place is.”

Where the Dragonfly

Where the Dragonfly is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday on the first floor of Conover Square, 201 N. Third St. in Oregon.